Biere D'Art | Heavyweight Brewing Co.

0 characters.
We love reviews! Turn your rating into one with ≥ 150 characters. Awesome. Thanks for the review!

In English, explain why you're giving this rating. Your review must discuss the beer's attributes (look, smell, taste, feel) and your overall impression in order to indicate that you have legitimately tried the beer. Nonconstructive reviews may be removed without notice and action may be taken on your account.

Taste: Drier than I expected. Delivers the spicy elements noted above, buoyed on a lightly toasted maltiness and yeast. A somewhat austere, hoppy interpretation of the traditional style. Not quite as full-flavored as I expected. Finished a bit weakly.

Drinkability: Very drinkable. Clean and crisp enough to be refreshing, while complex enough to encourage some engagement with the beer.

This beer probably got short-shrift because I squeezed in a sample of this during the Stone Brewing event at The Tiger, but I tried it early. I thought that this was almost too refined. Not as rustic or full-flavored as I would expect from a traditional biere de garde or a Heavyweight brew. Seemed more like a saison to me. Of all the Heavyweight beers I&#8217;ve tried, the Lunacy and this have been the weakest, leading me to believe that they need a bit of work on their Belgian styles. Suffered partly because I was so blown away by the Southampton French Christmas Ale/biere de garde. Worth trying if you can find it.

Bottom Line: I don&#8217;t know whether I&#8217;ll get another chance to try this, but I would if I do.

More User Reviews:

750 ml green champagne magnum that was corked and capped, no freshness date but being at 7.7 % abv and bottle conditioned there should be no problem with some extended shelf life.

Appearance: Orangey amber, semi clear with lots of bubbles rising to the top that pretty much holds the lace together.

Smell: Earthy and a tab musty of yeast and malt, fruity and spicy from the alcohol and some sweetness from some residuals.

Taste: Big on malt, thick on it with a base of sweetness. Spicy flavours jump on to the palate with peppery, citric and phenolic notes. Some exotic ripe fruit flavour similar to mango and star fruit come to mind. Alcohol is lingering in the end as it slowly warms the body.

Mouthfeel: Quick smoothness changes into a bold crispness, chewy in the mouth with a solid medium to full body.

Drinkability & Notes: Very flavourful but not as light, fluffy and effervescent as I expect my farmhouse ale to be. A decent stab at the style, set that aside and it is such a rich brew that I could not drink it alone. It went well with some whole grain crackers and a Stripey Cheddar from the UK.

This poured a nice orange color with gigantic bubbles that poured to a nice large everlasting head. Almost looked a bit overcarbonated.
The aroma was not really overpowering, but had the nose of yeast more than anything else I could tell.
Taste was a bit hard to come by at first due to the overcarbonation. After swirling it around for a bit, I could get some taste out of it. Once again, a bit yeasty more than anything else. Not very well balanced, but not comepletely underbalanced as to make it taste bad.
The mouthfeel like I said was a bit tough to decide due to the overcarbonation. I thought it may just be that bottle, but I see that others have mentioned it.
Drinkability wasnt too bad. I could drink another if there wasnt a large selection to choose from, but Iwouldnt go out of my way. Somewhat disappointing brew from a great brewery.

Appearance: Amber orangish brown, cloudy after the yeast sediment is poured in has a decent lacing leaves behind a nice amount of lacing after the cream hued head begins to dwindle down from it's fluffy impressive appearance. Aroma: Mild fruit esters blended with aromatic blend of spices excellent bready yeast note in the finish as well good stuff. Taste: Sweet bready yeast notes on the forefront of the flavor, slight alcohol sits nicely on the palate, and finally the highlight is a swirling fruit and exotic spice mixture good stuff. Mouthfeel: Rolls off the palate like butter, very smooth and palatable effervescent medium to light in body excellent. Drinkability: Tom Baker and Co. begin to amaze my taste buds on par with La Choulette Ambree I enjoyed every drop of my sample and I was yearning for another bottle.

Picked up a growler of this from the Flying Pig in Malvern to take to a Phillies game. The beer poured a good amber color with a medium white fluffy head. The aroma was yeasty with some banana and citrus notes. Pleasing to the nose but not overwhelmingly great. The taste was caramelly sweet, some citrus and banana notes round this one out. Pleasing to the mouth and easy to drink although at times a bit too sweet. Overall a fine beer that I enjoyed sharing with friends a having a few of.

Nicely done. Mellow, I thought this was a fresh batch in a new store (Cable in Severne, New York State) If it isn't, it mellowed nicely. Easy drink. Looks cidery but isn't,spot of lemon, pepper, and drop of vinegar, nice retaining white head on light colour. One of their better ones.

750 ml bottle cellared for over a year. Interestingly enough, even a long-standing bottle pours a murky amber-orange body with a reddish cast. Maybe the great release of pressure as the cork is pulled is enough to stir the lees. It's creamy white head foams up nicely but drops soon after, although it does maintain a thin lid and leave some nice splashes of lace about the goblet. The nose is quite magnificent with a combination of yeasty fruitiness (prunes/plum, raisins) and alcohol and spice swirling over caramelized sugars. In the mouth it's very fine, natural (bottle-conditioned) carbonation foams up on the tongue, lending a delicate zest before it becomes airy, creamy, and smooth. The aroma is mirrored in the flavor, and although it's not an overly complex beer, it is quite rich and luxurious. It's satiating for sure. The sweetish, caramelized-sugars of the malt are balanced by gentle pepper (black pepper, actually, but with some possible yeasty pepperiness going on as well) and a firm bitterness. Dark fruitiness ebbs back and forth throughout; and a hint of grassy and floral hops appears towards the swallow. It finishes remarkably dry given the amount of malt present; and it's subtly-candyish sweetness receeds almost immediately as a flash of dark fruit takes the stage but is quickly replaced by a spritz of pepper that gently lingers on the tongue. Remarkable! Definitely a beer worth trying (it's actually brewed with lager yeast), and a great candidate for cellaring. This is a special beer that would work well at any celebration, and especially during the fall and winter holidays; but it's also perfect as the rain falls on a dreary spring night, or out on the deck during a cool summer evening. Worth seeking out.

This pours with a giant sized long lasting tan head over super hazy amber liquid. Nose is yeasty, fruity and spicy, with some malt presence too. Taste is sharp, peppery, effervescent followed by sugary malt sweetness and a quickly subsiding hop bitterness. Finishes warm and spicy, with noticable alcohol. A very warming and complex brew in the Biere de Garde style.

Poured from a green 750ml bottle a georgeous roasted pecan leaving a cloudy body with a slight tan head. The nose is sweet, caramel, citrus hop, peach, and honey very complex nose sweet and malty. The taste is sweet on the palate, honey, herbs, and spices. As I take a second whiff some vanilla, oak, with a touch of smokiness. The finish is crisp, carbonated, a little dry and rough with a brush of alcohal in the throat.

Sugary aroma includes sweet caramel malt and a sharpness that isnt quite of spicy or carbonation in origin. Very attention getting aroma. Cloudy amber body witha pinky thin white head. Big caramel accented malt fore. Sweet bread and candy flavors are big in the middle and give the beer an easy drinking smoothness. Some yeastyness in the finish and a punch of spiciness.

Pours with a glowing orangey amber hue. Big fluffy white head forms that dies dwon slowly leaving very minor lace as the chalice is drained. Heavy chanpagne-like carbonation evidenced with bubbles running for the surface.
Aroma of light toffee, a yummy bread yeast. Also has some very light mixed fruit notes.
Flavor of bread, yeast, toffee, green appple, raisin. Very complex yet soft, really had to pay attention to get all subtle flavor note.
Mouthfeel is very, very dry and spicy. Heavy black pepper on the palate with a pinch of salt. Detected some corinader and some malt sweetness.
Drinkability is great, may have I another (Ted ?)
Thanks to beerluvr for another great Heavyweight offering.

the local store had a couple still floating around so i snatched one up and cracked it open. poured an orange/copper colour that was a bit lighter than expected. a decent head quickly dissolved to a minimal size, but hung around the whole time. there's a decent amount of carbonation here as well. both the smell and taste had me sort of baffled. nothing readily stood out amongst the following: alcohol, floral, citrus and even somewhat strange (but not necessarily bad) metallic charateristics were apparent. it's a rather sweet brew. there's a lot going on here. maybe a bit too much overall for me, but good nonetheless. i still haven't had a bad heavyweight brew. a good, limited beverage from a brewery in the next town over. you can't beat that.

Pours a hazy dark tan with a monstrous head. Careful when opening the bottle, it's going to flow out the top like crazy! Smells fabulous, so full of apples and sweets. Very malty and spicy as well. Tastes fruity and peppery with a very light feel in the mouth. Suprisingly good aftertaste of malts and fruits. This is a very good beer, but not the best. Tastes much like a good champagne, only better. A great beer for sitting and having a nice evening with the lady... or the dog.

Tough time getting the cork out of this one. This bottle is from the inital brewing. Sweet malts and peachy fruit in the nose. Golden yellow color with lots of little bubbles in the goblet. A slight pale white head dissapates rapidly to a constant sheen. Taste is very fruity peach, nectarine, and herbal. The finish leaves the tongue with a hint of candi sugar and grass/earth stains. Fuller coating mouth.

Appears a dark orange amber with a huge 6 finger creamy head that fills up in the 24 oz pilsner glass. Tons of carbonation in this one and lots of sticky webbing left behing.
Smell is grainy with lemongrass, funky apples, and tangerine with some breadiness and a little bit of butterscotch.
Taste is slightly sour with the same odd but likeable aromas.
Mouthfeel is prickly and dry in a medium bodied brew.
Drinkability is good....weird but good.

From a dark green champagne bottle capped and corked. Very appropriate bottle art as well.

Poured a opaque teak color full of mist and clouds much like today(and every other day) in Rochester. Atop was a khaki, foamy head with overly large bubbles that receded into a bit of a ring along the outside of my Duvel glass, but not very much lacing.

Smell was absolutely packed with juicy esters ranging from a heavy raisin to a more subtle currant and fig. There was also a fair bit of smokiness that wafted through the nose, but the smell was domintated by the fruity alcohol.

Taste was chock full of plumbs, raisin, more of the smokiness with even a hint of peat, plenty more red wine alcohol flavors that was rounded out with a mollassas and brown sugar finish with an undertow of rum. Mouthfeel was pretty heavily carbonated, but it worked well cutting across the alcohol and tickling the tongue.

This was a great beer to drink as the temperature dipped below freezing and snow flurries began. I am bummed because as far as I know this is a one time only brew and it really deserves to be brewed again. Well done Heavyweight!

Reviewed from a 750ml bottle. Pours out a slightly murky copper color with a very bubbly active head that I had to keep from going over the sides of the glass. Then I noticed the bubbles were rising out of the bottle and overflowing. I think this had enough carbonation. Not much lace was left after all the heady madness cleared up. Nose was strong with a fruity sweetness of apples along with a peppery spiciness. Other spices and fruits scents were there but I couldnt quite put a finger on them. A bit of funkiness in there as well. A spicy kick starts off the flavor along with a little funkiness. Lots of fruits apples, pears and the like are present. Its the spiciness I find standing out the most it really coated my tongue and hung around for a bit. Mouthfeel was good but a bit to effervescent which brought down the score a bit. Pretty good drinkability here but the over bubbly nature of this hurts it here as well. If the carbonation was a bit more under control this would improve greatly as it is its a good beer.

750ml bottle obtained as part of BIF 7 from Beergeek279. Thanks for the opportunity...

Uncapped with a loud pop, and large amounts of gas exited. While I let the bottle rest, foam slowly built up in the neck, nearing the top as I began to pour. Poured into an imperial pint glass, formed 3" of slightly off-white head over the light amber brew. A few pours and a lot more rest time was taken to get a glass near full. Head has tremendous staying power, which is impressive, and leaves huge chunks of laces at various locations up and down the glass wall. Aroma is subtle, and seems to be characterized by spiciness. Taste exhibits the same somewhat strong spiciness, rounded out with a pleasant wheat-like taste. Mouthfeel and drinkability are both good. Another interesting brew from the Heavyweight crew.

I had high hopes for this beer but it wasn't quite my style. Nice appearance though - bright vibrant red orange color, really appealing, however there was basically no head. Smell and taste both had nice mellow malty characteristics and a light to non-existent hop profile. The things that stood out in the taste where a nice fruity, appley sort of taste, and then a not so nice alcohol kick and weird metalic or rusty can flavor. I generally don't mind, and often welcome, a little kick of alcohol, or even a medium kick, but this was just weird. Mouthfeel was way too sticky and thick for the taste of this beer. Kind of syrupy without reason. That took the drinkability down a lot. Kind of a weird beer, but interesting.

When poured without the sediment the body is gorgeous, a bright glowing rosy copper that is warm and inviting. The head starts off an off-white sandy foam but fades quickly, although there is a constant cascade of small bubbles. Later in the bottle with the yeast, the beer becomes a cloudy brown and loses a lot of its beauty. The aroma is lemony (almost like lemon scented cleaning chemicals), grassy. The flavor has that same something that the Jade French Country Ale had. Venom described it as wet pennies, and I didn't think of it until then, but it really does taste like copper, especially with the surprisingly bitter hop bite. Bitter grass. A bit of caramel, spicy. Tasty beer, but a surprisingly bitter one. Almost unbalances itself. I think this would age nicely.

Gold in color with a paperthin head and no lacing through the drink. The aroma was of malt and pepper. The flavors was a different - a balance of sweetness, pepper, and fruit. The carbonation was very low, almost flat. This produced a very smooth mouthfeel with no kick. Not one of the better Heavyweight beers I have had, and I question the fact this seemed flat for this style. I will need to try this again, maybe in bottle form.

first taste of this style and it was very enojyable indeed.
poured a slightly hazy brown with orange/copper colors intertwined. It left a nice 2 inch head that disipated slightly and lacing was everywhere and stuck around for the duration.
smell was fruity, sugary with slight hints of spice and alcohol.
taste was sweet sugars, big fruit flavors that reminded me of mango and peaches with a hint of spice and warmth from the alcohol. it seemed very wine like in its essence. lovely brew that i would buy again. worth a try for sure.